The Monitor. [volume] (Woodstown, N.J.) 1884-1892, 1887-06-17
NURSING FEVER PATIENTS.
Doctor Pepper Explains How IL should
BE Done.

point, ana 1t IS important that the attend
ant should record the feverish conditions
ana their variations for the information Of
the doctor. 1t is essential that nurses and
others who are liable to be brought in con-
tact with sickness should understand the
treatment of fevers, as there are more of
such cases than all others combined.
TREATMENT OF ACUTE FEyERs.
Sin chronic cases there is always ample
time to secure competent attention, but in
scarlet, diphtheria and typhoid fevers there
must be prompt and vigilant action. In
such cases the fears Of the family are often
exaggerated, their neighbors become
alarmed and they are cut off from all as
ISOLATION and assistance in that direction.
1t becomes the duty of the nurse then to
discipline the sick room, as we'll as attend
to the wants of the patient. The sick room
must be kept quiet. A fever patient is
stupid and should be kept so. There
should be no talking, and friends and rel
| atives should not be allowed to worry the
patient with idle questions. Nearly all
fever cases are more or less contagious and
should be isolated, The temperature of
the sick room should BE- kept at from s.
to GS degrees it should be we'll ventilated
and not too dry. Disinfectants are popu-
lar but rarely useful in such cases. They
should never be used except under the
doctors orders. Ventilation and scpara-
tion are far more potent.
DISCIPLINE OF H SICK
'In the treatment of acute fevers there
should never be moe than oae nurse and
one other person visiting the sick room.
The practice of allowing curious people to
see and annoy the patient is wholly bad.
Not more than two persons should be per-
mitted in the sick room at one time. This
rule should never be broken. To do good
nursing requires ample rest and outdoor
| exercise. Fresll-air exercise must be in
sisted ON in poisonous or prolonged cases.
| A fever can invariably be detected by the
temperature being above the normal point
and every fever has its distinct features.
1t is not expected that the nurse or attend
ant will Diagnose a case, but they must
know the different eruptions by which
fevers are distinguished. These eIuptions
may come and go quickly, but they should
be carefully noted to assist the doctor
when he is called. In scarlet fever they
occur in from twelve to twenty-four hours;
in measles at the end Of three days, and in
typhoid fever about the seventh day. An
experienced eye can tell the moment it
sees one of these eruptions that it is a GER
tain disease and can be no other. The
nurse or attendant cannot be too careful,
therefore, in keeping a record of the way
the eruption first appears, where it was
located aud how it spread.
FOOD y DIGESTION.
'The attendant shonld watch how the
| patient takes food, especially where the
throat is affected, and how it seemed to
suit him. Ii Will not do in fever cases to
force food upon a patient whether he likes
it or not. 1t is not the quality of food
taken into the stomach that is beneficial.
but the amount digested. The condition
of digestion and Of the bowels must also
be accurately reported to the doctor, not
only to enable him to decide upon proper
diet. but also to anticipate the character
Of the fever. A tendency to diarrh@a
means typhoid fever, and it is the only
fever in which this symptom appears. After
paying attention to temperature and venti-
lation and securing absolute quiet for the
patient, the next thing is to understand
what kind of food is to be given, when and
how much at a time. In all fevers the
great disideratum is good nursing and
careful dieting. There are no drugs that
will cure them and doctors are only able
to check and guide such cases. The ten
dency of all fevers is, however, towards re-
covery, but they are very weakening not
only on the system, but especially SO on
the muscles Of the stomach.
ALOUD FOOD
s'The diet IL such cases should therefore
be llquld food. 1t is just as ~invigorating
and more digestible. A single %imprudenee
of the nurse in regulating the diet may and
oftener does lead to serious consequences.
and one that allows the patient anything
forbidden by the physician Should be dis
missed at once.
'There is nothing better than milk in
fever. 1t is highly nourishing, refreshing
and grateful. The cases in which it cam
not be given to an advanta &c arc rare. 1t
is the best diet, although there are some it
does not suit. Patients with whom it does
not agree become restless and if they are
delirious grow more so. Changing its
temperature or diluting it with water gen.
orally obviates this difficulty. The stom-
ach of the patient should never be over
tasked, as one drop taken into it that is
not digested is injurious. In health ar
adult requires eighty ounces of liquid in
twenty-four hours, in sickness four pints
or sixty-four ounces is an average allow
ance. Water is always beneficial in @feyers,
but should not be too cold or taken in too
large quantities at a time. It helps to
carry off the poison from the system, is re-
freshing, and in many ways alleviates the
patients suflerings.
A Liberal FEVER E
"Three pints of milk and pint of
broth is a good diet for a fever patient and